ZADECO President Langtone Sichone has accused the Zambia Police of failing to arrests Patriotic Front thugs that perpetuated violence in Chipata prior to the by-elections because of the arrogance exhibited by the PF leadership.

Mr Sichone also noted that it was disappointing that the leadership of the ruling party had failed to exhibit good morals to its members hence the intimidation and harassment of officials in government institutions in the country.

He said that the arrogance displayed by some PF ministers such as Mr Wynter Kabimba was scary and was not in the interest of Zambia’s democracy.

The ZADECO leader said there was no way police could operate effectively because the command was politically appointed and would depend on instructions from the leadership of the ruling party.

He said the police if left alone could do a good job but because of the intimidation by the leadership in the ruling party, they have let the thugs that fired shots in Chipata go free.

“In a country where there is anarchy, it is perpetuated by members of the party in power. It is not the duty of police but members to adhere to the rule of law. If the police was independent it was going to effect an arrest by now. If the PF has failed to provide leadership, it is sad for the democratic principles of Zambia.

“The leadership of the PF must show maturity. There is political interference in the operations of the police. Those in authority instruct police what to do but we are saying they should be left alone to do their job,” he said.

Mr Sichone added that Mr Kabimba sentiments regarding the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) had triggered a lot of trouble because of the manner he handled the issues.

He charged that the PF did not use wisdom in dealing with the matter concerning the ECZ because sentiments by Mr Kabimba have opened doors for all thugs to insult the Commission.

The opposition leader said it would have been better if the PF secretary general had written to the ECZ instead of going public about the matter.

“This has incited cadres to against the ECZ. Cadres now feel they own the show and don’t care what type of statements they were issuing against the institution. The PF is governing with a lot of intimidation in all government institutions. It will be a miracle if there will be no changes at ECZ.

“PF leadership must demonstrate good morals. It is clear that those being targeted will be silenced or PF members will run amock on the ECZ. These issues can be dealt with internally. As political parties we do hold meetings as Electoral Commission Liason committee where Mr Kabimba is expected to be part of these meetings but he only sends a junior officer by the name of Yamba Nsama,” he said.